Peroxycarboxylic acids constitute an important class of substances which may be used for a wide range of purposes. Thus, peroxycarboxylic acids are commonly employed as oxidizing reagents in the field of organic synthesis for the production of a variety of organic chemicals. In particular, organic molecules containing unsaturations or other reducing groups may be oxidized in a high yield under mild conditions when subjected to peroxycarboxylic acids during organic synthesis, and consequently peroxycarboxylic acids may advantageously be used, e.g., for the preparation of epoxides from unsaturated hydrocarbons. Apart from their use as oxidation reagents, peroxycarboxylic acids may also be used as bleaching agents, for instance to decolorize paper mill process streams. Furthermore, preparations of peroxycarboxylic acids may be used for disinfection purposes (e.g. in the food industry) due to the sensitivity of microorganisms to these compounds (see e.g. H. C. Flemming, Zbl. Bakt. Hyg., I.Abt.Orig. B 179, 97-111 (1984)).
While peroxycarboxylic acids are highly advantageous reagents for these and other applications, their continued presence in the end products is not always desirable as they represent a potential environmental or health hazard. For instance, solutions of dyes decolorized by means of peroxycarboxylic acids should preferably be free from remaining peroxycarboxylic acid before being discharged into the environment where the peroxycarboxylic acid might exert a harmful effect. Similarly, utensils and surfaces disinfected in the food industry by means of peroxycarboxylic acids should be free from the reagent prior to use since the peroxycarboxylic acid may otherwise deteriorate the food product produced or eventually reach the consumer. Furthermore, substances prepared by chemical synthesis utilizing peroxycarboxylic acids should be free from the oxidation reagent which for instance might undesirably influence the further use or conversion of the synthesized substance.
Accordingly, there is a need for processes whereby residual peroxycarboxylic acids may be removed, in particular processes which allow for selective decomposition of peroxycarboxylic acids under mild conditions and which may thus be applied for the removal of peroxycarboxylic acids without adversely affecting other components in the peroxycarboxylic acid containing medium. Such processes should preferably also be economically viable for the treatment of large volumes of very dilute peroxycarboxylic acid containing solutions. To the present inventors' knowledge, no entirely satisfactory processes for the removal of peroxycarboxylic acids are currently available, and the use of peroxycarboxylic acids is accordingly limited, no matter how desirable their application in many processes may be.